Kombucha or Water Kefir?

[kefir_14]

Hi everyone,

I'm getting back into fermented foods for regular probiotics and considering getting a kombucha scoby or water kefir grains to make a fizzy probiotic ginger beer.

Anyway I'm weighing up which to get and any experience, advice or suggestion welcome. Which do you prefer and why?

Also can I make kombucha by using the sediment and some liquid from a store bought bottle of kombucha or is this not recommended? If so how exactly would I go about using this method?

Look forward to hearing from you.
Thanks

[Christopher Weeks]

I've started kombucha three times. Each time I got a bottle of commercial, unflavored, live kombucha from the store, and just poured it into a vessel of sweetened, cooled, strong tea. After a couple of weeks there was a healthy SCOBY. It took almost no work on my part.

[Tibor]

I would suggest you get water kefir grains to make fizzy ginger beer.
It's a fairly simple process . You could make a ginger bug and then make ginger beer but I have found it easier to make it with water kefir grains. You could ferment sugar water with kefir grains and then add any kind of juice or juices, or strong sweet teas, to make fizzy probiotic sodas.

[kefir_14]

I've started kombucha three times. Each time I got a bottle of commercial, unflavored, live kombucha from the store, and just poured it into a vessel of sweetened, cooled, strong tea. After a couple of weeks there was a healthy SCOBY. It took almost no work on my part.

Thanks I'll give this a try in the meantime and see how it goes. If you use one bottle of kombucha (330ml) then how much water, tea and sugar would you suggest? Also do you seal the fermentation jar or cover with a cloth?

Thanks

I would suggest you get water kefir grains to make fizzy ginger beer.
It's a fairly simple process . You could make a ginger bug and then make ginger beer but I have found it easier to make it with water kefir grains. You could ferment sugar water with kefir grains and then add any kind of juice or juices, or strong sweet teas, to make fizzy probiotic sodas.

Yes, from what I've read it seems water kefir is both quicker and simpler to maintain. Do you know how they compare taste wise?

Thanks

[Christopher Weeks]

I don't really know the process well enough to tell you measurements exactly. I'm not a huge kombucha guy and don't keep it going all the time. I'd just get out Wild Fermentation and read whatever Sandor wrote and follow those instructions. Sorry. Something like a pan of water, with enough tea to make it a strong brew and then enough sugar to make it sort of grossly sweet. I doubt the measures matter all that much, the organisms will convert whatever sugar you put in and so it might depend on how sour you want it or maybe how soon...?

But I did cover it with a cloth.

[Tibor]

I couldn't tell the difference in taste. It carbonates quicker with water kefir. I don't have a juicer yet, so I'm simmering a strong sweet ginger(or turmeric) tea to add to my fermented kefir water. I'm still wondering if it would carbonate quicker, and be better for you, if I never heated the ginger. Even if you make a raw ginger bug, you are still simmering a tea to add to it to make ginger beer.
I got a really good deal on a case of organic apple juice and have been making a very popular apple/lemon (with a cinnamon stick) water kefir that carbonates well in 12 hours or so.
All these conversations gives me ideas. I'm going to grate some ginger and add it to my next apple water kefir and see what that comes out like.

[kefir_14]

I couldn't tell the difference in taste. It carbonates quicker with water kefir. I don't have a juicer yet, so I'm simmering a strong sweet ginger(or turmeric) tea to add to my fermented kefir water. I'm still wondering if it would carbonate quicker, and be better for you, if I never heated the ginger. Even if you make a raw ginger bug, you are still simmering a tea to add to it to make ginger beer.
I got a really good deal on a case of organic apple juice and have been making a very popular apple/lemon (with a cinnamon stick) water kefir that carbonates well in 12 hours or so.
All these conversations gives me ideas. I'm going to grate some ginger and add it to my next apple water kefir and see what that comes out like.

Thanks for the reply. I assume you are adding the ginger tea and apple juice during the secondary fermentation?

Do you bottle and carbonate in glass bottles? I have some flip tops which would be great but will try using plastic first to get a feel for how long it takes to carbonate and prevent any kefir bombs!

[Tibor]

yes, secondary fermentation in a 3 L snap lock jar, and then I transfer to clear glass snap lock 1 L bottles after 2 days .

[kefir_14]

yes, secondary fermentation in a 3 L snap lock jar, and then I transfer to clear glass snap lock 1 L bottles after 2 days .

I have another question(s)...

Do you do the primary ferment in closed jar or with cloth covering and for how long? If it's closed do you use an airlock or open the lid to let it vent?

Thanks again

[Tibor]

Check my procedure that I just put up under the Shared Recipe topic line.